tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850Wed, 16 Sep 2015 18:00:32 +0000Carrie's Peace Corps Bloghttp://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Carrie)Blogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-8280015656533302452Sat, 28 Nov 2009 02:55:00 +00002009-11-27T19:03:10.002-08:00Rainy SeasonHello all!<br /><br />It is now officially rainy season in North West Province. It has rained every day for the last few weeks, but still usually only an hour or so during the day and some more at night. This means that work as far as education has slowed down (kids are off of school in December) but picked up as far as gardening. My work lately has been really slow, but I am excited to help conduct another nursery school teacher training in a neighboring area in mid-December. It is a good time to do trainings since ideally the teachers will be ready to teach by the time term one rolls around in January.<br /><br />I have also been fortunate in meeting lots of people from all walks of life recently. I have been working more with the Zambian Department of Fisheries because my host father is building a fish pond with the help of another PCV, I have also met game lodge owners, lumberjacks from Spain, and all sorts of other random characters. It keeps life interesting, that is for sure.<br /><br />One interesting thing I have been able to do is go fishing with my host mother and brother, Dear. I spent the entire day speaking to them in Luvale, since their English is limited. We used a mosquito net (my host mother insisted it was an old one and that they have one on their bed) but other people were using spears (boys, with little success) or woven baskets. I even caught several fish with my bare hands! We ended up catching maybe 80 fish, the largest being about 3 inches long. My host mother was disappointed at the catch, but I thought it was a nice day anyway.http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/11/rainy-season.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-5574216756663575006Mon, 12 Oct 2009 07:17:00 +00002009-10-12T00:25:18.748-07:00Stevie is a GodSo Stevie wrote two songs for In Service Training, and she posted them on her blog, but I want to post them here as well. She is a genius.<br /><br /><strong>Go Slow</strong><br />Chorus<br />[Go Slow, don’t move too fast Just enough to keep the kids coming to sweep the classGo slow, don’t move too fastNext term might see some teachin’ so sit back and relax]<br /><br />Now let me tell you all a little tale<br />Of life under the sun for one quite pale<br />The mission in front was impossible<br />To make teachers willing not just capable<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />At first I hoped to be just a fly on the wall<br />But soon there was nothing to see at all<br />The first week of term was for cleaning the class<br />And all the complaints were just a pain in the ass<br />No rural hardship so we fight for the cause<br />And then with the what what, sports and nataz<br />The strike was decided the only way<br />No learning to do so pupils stayed at bay<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />Yet I still have three months to fill with time<br />So I thought I’d tell you about in this here rhyme<br />With the schools all deserted and empty<br />I found many other things tempting<br />There is the important job of entertainin’<br />Always a hit- what’s that mazungu makin’<br />I became master of the brazier cake<br />Cause mufu birthday’s were serious to take<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />Chasing after the DEBS took many a day<br />Happy to find a new one’s on the way<br />See our DEBS happened to be a big fat jerk<br />And seemed to hate me just as much as my work<br />Never turned down a single invitation<br />Resulting in hours of church and salvation<br />I made friends with the small one block boma<br />On days with power we cried HALLEJAH<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />The strike finally ceased with 3 weeks to go<br />Hit the ground runnin’ on with the show<br />My ZIC’s quite a rockstar, she is one sassy lady<br />We were bikin to schools in my zone daily<br />Managed to fit some TGM’s in<br />Did lots of work with a program called SHN<br />I am used when it comes to life village side<br />Just ok with selling my soul… for a free ride<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />House décor included some painting<br />And when I get home there’ll be kitty waiting<br />Let’s hope that the go slow is truly finished<br />Otherwise my to read list will be diminished<br />Not sure how much real teaching there will be to see<br />When all of these kids out runnin’ free<br />But I’ll still be there tryin’ to fight the good fight<br />One step at a time, proving education’s a right<br /><br />Chorus…just a bit of culture exchange<br /><br /><strong>Southern Cross</strong><br />Verse 1<br />Cast out on a shipset on land all a blaze<br />unknown how life has come this way<br />everyday set the course destination unsure<br />and the patience of waiting and waiting, not knowing if it matters at all<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />When the sun melts away<br />And one by one the stars appear<br />Then I gaze at the Southern Cross<br />And the world melts away<br />All the worries and the doubts<br />And I know that this is right<br /><br />Verse 2<br />Some days start so strong<br />endless movement forward<br />this could be the real start of things<br />yet somehow turn away<br />everything falls apart<br />and I'm sinking and spinning and trying<br />just to keep floating at all<br /><br />Chorus<br /><br />When the sun melts away<br />And one by one the stars appear<br />Then I gaze at the Southern Cross<br />And the world melts away<br />All the worries and the doubts<br />And I know that this is right<br /><br />Bridge<br />How much can you change without taking what is there<br />And How much take you give without knowing if they care<br />And How much can you take without loosing while you came<br />There's value in unseen efforts<br />The beauty's in the choice of time<br /><br />Verse 3<br />All it takes is one day<br />one sweet moment of bliss<br />then the shore somehow comes into view<br />on it goes spend your days<br />slowly gliding along<br />without seeing, or asking,<br />not knowing how this became home at all<br />When the sun melts away<br />And one by one the stars appear<br />Then I gaze at the Southern Cross<br />And the world melts away<br />All the worries and the doubts<br />And I know that this here right<br />When the sun melts away<br />And one by one the stars appear<br />Then I gaze at the Southern Cross<br />And the world melts away<br />All the worries and the doubts<br />And I know that this is right yes<br />I know that this, this is righthttp://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/10/stevies-god.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-9192714495681239793Sun, 11 Oct 2009 12:50:00 +00002009-10-11T05:57:53.173-07:00<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/StHWEghNL8I/AAAAAAAAAC8/7M_KwyFAIP4/s1600-h/DSCN3254.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391325601876225986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/StHWEghNL8I/AAAAAAAAAC8/7M_KwyFAIP4/s320/DSCN3254.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />New library books waiting to be categorized<br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/StHVSpKY-CI/AAAAAAAAAC0/RwpTZmObDwk/s1600-h/DSCN3313.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391324745202989090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/StHVSpKY-CI/AAAAAAAAAC0/RwpTZmObDwk/s320/DSCN3313.JPG" border="0" /></a> Sweet little girl with missing front teeth at the high school graduation</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><br /><div></div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/10/new-library-books-waiting-to-be.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-2314858954792306518Sun, 11 Oct 2009 12:24:00 +00002009-10-11T05:46:06.838-07:00Akuli Musana (It is hot!)Hey Everyone!<br /><br />I am in Lusaka on my way to a music festival, and I have FREE internet! So let me update you all.<br /><br />First of all the big news is that there is a new intake of fish farmers and health volunteers, so Mufumbwe has grown by 4 more volunteers. I have already biked to one of the sites, my new nearest neighbors which are about 27-30km from my house. They all seemed to be getting settled alright, and we are really excited to have new faces.<br /><br />I have been working on my garden a lot, my fence is all put up and I am working on perma culture techniques, so I am learning as I go. I have already planted onions, marygolds, and hot peppers. When I get back to site I hope to plant oregano, cilantro, basil, rosemary (thanks Aunt Nancy!) carrots, lettuce, celery, green peppers, and tomatoes. I have never gardened before so if even one thing grows I will be really happy! I generally work on it between 5-7am because it has been really brutally hot out lately, and I have to fetch water from my borehole to water the plants.<br /><br />Hot season is in full swing here. We did get our first rains a week ago, but since it has continued to be very very hot. Most locals get up around 4 or 5am and head to their fields, come back around 10am and do work around the house. Then work starts up again around 3pm when it starts to get a little cooler. The mornings are wonderfully cool, but it is difficult to get to sleep at night because it is so hot. The rains are supposed to start at the end of the month, which will be a welcome relief.<br /><br />The library in my zone, thanks to the previous volunteer's hard work, just recieved over 4,000 books from America. So I have been busy busy going through them all, reminicing, and categorizing. We had to categorize, shelf, stamp, pocket, record, and label all the books, so I am sure I will be busy with that for quite awhile now.<br /><br />The schools in my zone along with the Ministry of Education (MOE) have been rock stars this term. One school is building 2 teachers houses, and 2 new classroom blocks (one by the MOE and one community funded.) Another school just put a roof on their long standing roofless classroom blocks that was community built (imagine, 3 classrooms and two offices not being used because there is no roof,) they got two new teachers, which doubles their staff, which is a much needed addition. They had 200+ kids and only two teachers, one of which was the principal so he wasn't really supposed to teach. They are also getting another classroom block built by the MOE. So my area is really developing quickly. Let's hope the projects are followed through to fruition.<br /><br />Otherwise I have studying Luvale, hanging out with friends, sewing, reading, napping, visiting schools, having meetings, and other things like that to keep busy. I might be starting two more nursery schools soon, but I am not sure if they are serious or not.<br /><br />I think that is about all for now. Check out picture on facebook.http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/10/akuli-musana-it-is-hot.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-6954921617177985434Sun, 11 Oct 2009 12:19:00 +00002009-10-11T05:22:36.975-07:00Amazing Shop NamesI will keep an on going list of all the amazing shop names I see here in Zambia<br /><br />That Place-Kabwe<br />Boom Shaka-outside Kabwe<br />Stranded Millionare-Mufumbwe<br />Just in Case Butchery-outside Lusaka<br />Mysterious Hardware-Lusaka<br />If Not, Why Not?-Kasempa<br /><br />Then the variations of Shop Rite:<br />Shop Left-Between Solwezi and Kasempa<br />PoshRite- Kasempa Turnoff<br />Write Shop<br />Rite Shope-outside Lusakahttp://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/10/amazing-shop-names.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-7698608751495513031Sat, 12 Sep 2009 13:47:00 +00002009-09-12T06:57:20.445-07:00Quick UpdateHey all!<br /><br />I am back in Solwezi for a couple days for a resiliancy training and to welcome Lynn as our new PCVL (Peace Corps Volunteer Leader I think.) The big news is that a Shop Rite opened in Solwezi, which has pretty much revolutionized our lives here! I mean...cream cheese!?!?! Amazing!<br /><br />I just had second site visit come to my place (unfortunately I missed Likumbi Lya Mize for it) and the new kids are a blast. We are almost doubling the amount of volunteers in North Western Province (we will be 27 total) and Mufumbwe will have TEN volunteers, which is absolute insanity for such a small district. So my new family includes Bob and Marie, Laura, Adam, and Ashley. We are all really excited to get to know them and the rest of the new people.<br /><br />Otherwise I am still loving life in the village. I went to buy charcoal yesterday at the traditional healer's place and she started getting demon visions or something and ran around her compound yelling. It was definitely interesting after being around Americans for two weeks to be back in the village. I love it though, I got a very warm welcome from my family and my garden fence and toilet are FINISHED. Hurray!http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/09/quick-update.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-6033053792206882134Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:55:00 +00002009-08-27T13:14:40.203-07:00Pictures! (more on facebook)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SpagovuQB_I/AAAAAAAAACs/BQVRVMPov7o/s1600-h/DSCN3154.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374659827178932210" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SpagovuQB_I/AAAAAAAAACs/BQVRVMPov7o/s320/DSCN3154.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />A cool billboard in Lusaka<br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SpafOXAszKI/AAAAAAAAACk/uXOK6899LMM/s1600-h/DSCN3136.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374658274357202082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SpafOXAszKI/AAAAAAAAACk/uXOK6899LMM/s320/DSCN3136.JPG" border="0" /></a> Ricardo, Kamizhi (Brittany) and Kevin hoeing our permaculture garden!</div><br /><div><br /><br /><div></div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/pictures-more-on-facebook.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-5652438434816144333Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:40:00 +00002009-08-27T08:15:32.256-07:00Here are blogs from others in my group :)<br /><br /><a href="http://zambiaigo.blogspot.com/">http://zambiaigo.blogspot.com/</a> Brittany.<br /><br /><a href="http://w4justice.wordpress.com/">http://w4justice.wordpress.com/</a> Beth<br /><br /><a href="http://steviegreenwell.blogspot.com/">http://steviegreenwell.blogspot.com/</a> Steviehttp://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/here-are-blogs-from-others-in-my-group.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-716384733940921752Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:17:00 +00002009-08-27T07:30:35.110-07:00End of In Service TrainingThe "Boma Bike" the most tricked out bike in all of Mufumbwe!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SpaYRKFBUJI/AAAAAAAAACc/lqRTyCp23-Q/s1600-h/DSCN3124.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374650625843875986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SpaYRKFBUJI/AAAAAAAAACc/lqRTyCp23-Q/s320/DSCN3124.JPG" border="0" /></a> <br /><div>Hey all!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I am back again..internet overload! I just finished up 10 days in Lusaka hanging out with my entire intake, which was great. We really bonded more as a group which was nice. I was going to try to go up to the Likumbi Lya Mize festival, but the dates were sketchy (is it 23rd-28th? 28th-31?) so instead I am going to host the new kids for their second site visit!!!! The details for that are also wonderfully sketchy, but I will be hosting somewhere in between 4 and 7 people for somewhere between 3 to 7 days. Haha. I am excited but hopefully it goes well.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Love you all,</div><br /><div>Carrie</div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/end-of-in-service-training.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-1485350407352950397Sun, 16 Aug 2009 08:36:00 +00002009-08-16T01:38:18.765-07:00Hey everyone,<br /><br />I forgot to ask on the last post, can anyone that gets letters from me please keep them so that I can make photocopies when I get back to the States? I would love to keep them since it has basically been my journal. Thanks!http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/hey-everyone-i-forgot-to-ask-on-last.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-136446329903840502Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:50:00 +00002009-08-14T08:50:02.189-07:00Facebook | Carrie Navin: zambian (north west) baby funerals<a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2163402&amp;id=7400460&amp;saved#/note.php?note_id=114682967405">Facebook Carrie Navin: zambian (north west) baby funerals</a>: "If the baby dies when it is less than one month old it is not treated like a normal person as its soul has not really been on earth long enough to be considered part of the human world. When the baby dies, the mother is not allowed to cry or else she will become infertile. The baby is not buried in a graveyard but under the mwenge tree in a shallow grave with its head facing west. If it faces east the mother will be infertile. Before they cover the baby with soil, they tie a white cotton thread to the baby's finger. When they bury it, the string is tied to the mwenge used. I asked if this is to keep the baby from coming back from the dead, and did not get a straight answer."http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/facebook-carrie-navin-zambian-north.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-5760507081840089947Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:49:00 +00002009-08-14T08:49:04.166-07:00Facebook | Carrie Navin<a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2163402&amp;id=7400460&amp;saved#/profile.php?id=7400460&amp;v=app_2347471856&amp;ref=profile">Facebook Carrie Navin</a>: "There was a zambian rebel leader that spent a lot of time in my area and affected the people so i thought i would write about him.<br />Just before zambian independence the major domestic political party was going to put up Nkumbula as their presidential candidate and Mushala as their vp candidate. Kenneth Kaunda, the secretary of the party played a trick and instead of campaigning for Nkumbula, campaigned for himself. Kaunda ended up winning the election and instated a one party system. Mushala was put as the minister of wildlife and was based in jivundu (25km from me) Mushala was pissed and quit and tried to run as president, which was illegal in the one party state. So he ran to namibia and angola to get support, training, and weapons. While there he also learned juju to make himself invisible to the government troops. He came back to zambia in 1975 with soldiers, the zambian government sent troops to stop him. They fought bush battles in kashima (this was the early 80s so most people i know here were directly effected. After a time when Mushala burned houses in kashima, the locals took up arms (dogs, bows and arrows) to fight. Mushala was hit in the heel and two kashima men were shot. Mushala fled to congo for ammunition and to take revenge on kashima. His wife at the time was living in jivundu and was fed up with living in the bush and so she gave up mushalas camp to the gov troops. When Mushala came back from congo they ambushed him and shot him in the eye. He is buried in solwezi.<br /><br />My host father told me this tale so it is his fault if it is exagerated or wrong, haha. I think there is a book about Mushala so if you are interested check it out."http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/facebook-carrie-navin.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-3444148037013438043Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:07:00 +00002009-08-14T08:38:19.853-07:006 months!<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SoWET7Eu_xI/AAAAAAAAACU/h5du8F3tw_o/s1600-h/DSCN3061.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369843608519114514" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SoWET7Eu_xI/AAAAAAAAACU/h5du8F3tw_o/s320/DSCN3061.JPG" /></a><br /><div>Hey all!<br />I have been in Zambia for almost 6 months, so I am on my way to In Service Training in Lusaka.<br />Things at site have been great, I love it there so much and everything is wonderful. I am working hard with Lister and my host mother on reading and writing in English and we read together almost every day. Lister is making amazing progress!<br /></div><br /><div>The nursery schools are still going really well. They took a field trip to my house to see my cat, and I got to see them all walk like a cat, meow like a cat, pet the cat, and count its legs. Too adorable for words. The teachers are working overtime to catch them up to the government school terms so that the kids old enough to go into grade 1 will be better prepared to start in january. I am really proud of the teachers for all their hard work and enthusiasm.<br /></div><br /><div>Thank you to everyone who has sent things to me and for the nursery school, it is all very very very much appreciated!!!<br /></div><br /><div>In other village news, I got a new bafwa (bathing shelter) because my first one had holes in it (not very condusive to private bathing, huh?). I also am having my toliet replaced for the same reason, and my garden fence was almost finished when I left site! So I should be able to start my new garden when I get back.<br /></div><br /><div>I got the chance to connect with my host kids more; we got to make makish masks from the packages you sent and the markers. They absolutely loved it. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>With the kids I also started a "trade condoms for balloon" program because they use condoms (sometimes used ones...gross, right?) to make balloons. So I will trade any kid that comes to my house a condom for a real balloon. Hopefully it catches on.<br /></div><br /><div>Otherwise things are great and I hope you are all doing well!</div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/08/6-months.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-3114739119430311956Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:47:00 +00002009-06-18T17:53:48.492-07:00<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/Sjrg0gYqS4I/AAAAAAAAACE/Mdd57cIYVm0/s1600-h/DSCN2929.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5348834700107074434" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/Sjrg0gYqS4I/AAAAAAAAACE/Mdd57cIYVm0/s320/DSCN2929.JPG" /></a> You can't expect my cat, Tuneza, to get all the big mice that come in my hut. Just in case!<br /><div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/you-cant-expect-my-cat-tuneza-to-get.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-3883676176551741126Thu, 18 Jun 2009 23:26:00 +00002009-06-18T17:24:57.010-07:00Tribal CousinshipTribal cousinship is a big part of life here. In America, I prefer "ethnic group" to "tribe" but tribe is the word they use here. So I will use it as well. "Tribe" brings images of cannibalism, living in the bush, and running around naked with spears but really all it means is the historical and language group. In Kashima, there are many groups: the Luvales (which I claim to be a part of), Luchazis, Mbundas, Chokwes, Kaondes and Lundas are the most prevalent. Between these groups they have tribal cousins, with whom they are allowed to tease and joke. These cousinships usually come from war or marriage, but I got the stories of some of the ones in this area.<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">The Luvale and the Luchazi</span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></strong><br />The Luvale used to live in the plain by a river and used to raise a lot of cattle. The Luchazis lived further from the river and collected mushrooms. When the Luchazis came to the river to draw water they saw the cattle and wanted to buy them. They asked the Luvales to sell them some and the Luvales took the money saying they would deliver the animals in a few days.<br />When those few days passed with no animals the Luchazis went to find the seller. When they got to his land they were told he had died and that they should buy animals from the neighbors instead. The Luchazis gave the neighbors money and were told they would deliver the animals in a few days. The story continued like that for awhile until they caught on to the trick and stopped buying cattle.<br />The Luvales were also fishermen, so when the Luchazis bought fish from the Luvales, the Luvales gave it to them in broken cauldrons with patched bottoms. These cauldrons are very important to the Luvales and they are symbolic of the Luvale village. When the Luchazis stirred nshima in the cauldron, the patch came off and the Luvales pretended to be horrified saying, "You have just killed our headman!" They then demanded payment for the broken cauldron. To this day the Luvales claim the Luchazis are fools and the Luchazis claim the Luvales are thieves.<br /><u></u><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>The Mbunda and the Chokwe</strong></span><br /><br />One day, the Mbunda king, named Katawola, went to the Chokwe Kingdom where the chief was called Mushilingingi. Katawola came across a beautiful mwali (girl undergoing initiation) and fell in love with her. Katawola went to Mushilingingi and pleaded that he give him the girl to marry.<br />Mushilingingi refused as she was still undergoing initiation and offered Katawola another beautiful girl. Katawola refused and left with his followers.<br />That night he told his followers to sneak in and steal the mwali. They obeyed. The next morning the Chokwes followed and there was a battle. The Mbundas were defeated and Katawola was beheaded and his head was put on a stake.<br />The Mbundas were infuriated and went for revenge. They captured Mushilingingi and he fell to the same fate as Katawola. After this, the Mbundas and the Chokwes agreed that they were even and would never fight again.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>The Lunda and the Kaonde</strong></span><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></strong><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong></strong></span><span style="font-size:100%;">A Lunda hunter who was exceedingly handsome was named Kabinda Mutatata. One day he went hunting in the bush. The day went on, he was not having any luck and he was getting tired. </span><br />He came across a well deep in the bush. He stopped and asked the Kaonde women drawing water, for a drink. The women rushed off to tell their Chieftainess Luwezhi about the handsome hunter.<br />She beckoned him to her place and heard his life story. She invited him to stay and hunt for her kingdom. After awhile she became pregnant and asked him to marry her. They had many children and to this day both the Lundas and the Kaondes claim to be the parents of one another.http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/tribal-cousinship.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-7218556194748512638Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:41:00 +00002009-06-03T03:47:38.155-07:00my host brother Upale, helping out<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZUeoObKjI/AAAAAAAAAB8/3EYu0X4zjos/s1600-h/DSCN2940.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343050893092399666" style="WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZUeoObKjI/AAAAAAAAAB8/3EYu0X4zjos/s320/DSCN2940.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/my-host-brother-upale-helping-out.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-8386710873939635595Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:32:00 +00002009-06-03T03:40:20.278-07:00My host brothers at the mukanda ceremony<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZS7_J2MVI/AAAAAAAAAB0/ZcyKWb1zXA4/s1600-h/DSCN0859.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343049198440165714" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZS7_J2MVI/AAAAAAAAAB0/ZcyKWb1zXA4/s320/DSCN0859.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/my-host-brothers-at-mukanda-ceremony.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-8312917999191428492Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:16:00 +00002009-06-03T03:31:48.862-07:00My neighborhood women and the North Western Crew of April 09!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZQtE4O9SI/AAAAAAAAABs/mOj0au_vYBk/s1600-h/DSCN0841%5B1%5D"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343046743255610658" style="WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZQtE4O9SI/AAAAAAAAABs/mOj0au_vYBk/s320/DSCN0841%5B1%5D" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZOo4Z8RzI/AAAAAAAAABk/Vr5PRHpjXvs/s1600-h/DSCN0730%5B2%5D"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343044472164599602" style="WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZOo4Z8RzI/AAAAAAAAABk/Vr5PRHpjXvs/s200/DSCN0730%5B2%5D" border="0" /></a> </div><div>Geoff, Stevie, me, Brittany, Beth, Mike<br /><br /></div><div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/my-neighborhood-women-and-north-western.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-8254744329770853120Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:05:00 +00002009-06-03T03:16:03.162-07:00Blacksmith Brown<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZNI3MzyFI/AAAAAAAAABc/_VcWcLopF0A/s1600-h/DSCN2933%5B1%5D"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343042822573639762" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZNI3MzyFI/AAAAAAAAABc/_VcWcLopF0A/s320/DSCN2933%5B1%5D" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Wicked Awesome Blacksmith Brown, dressed as a wizard (not really, it is his pastor's outfit)</div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/north-western-crew-of-april-2009.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-7362847215291699544Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:48:00 +00002009-06-03T03:05:09.439-07:00A baby clapping and my house in NW!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZKp0pDw8I/AAAAAAAAABU/lGyWkgDLKuE/s1600-h/DSCN0659%5B1%5D"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343040090287621058" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZKp0pDw8I/AAAAAAAAABU/lGyWkgDLKuE/s320/DSCN0659%5B1%5D" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZIecJJMXI/AAAAAAAAABM/MNChVNTbcp4/s1600-h/DSCN2893%5B1%5D"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343037695709491570" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KHu0FWLYH0w/SiZIecJJMXI/AAAAAAAAABM/MNChVNTbcp4/s320/DSCN2893%5B1%5D" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div> </div></div>http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/baby-clapping-and-my-house-in-nw.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-2812117758094985041Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:39:00 +00002009-06-03T02:46:35.516-07:00Zambia Shoes and Belt BucklesA shout out needs to go out to the glory that is men's shoes and belt buckles here in Zambia. I feel like about half of my pictures will be of these two objects. Shoes are usually long and pointy, and often made out of an amazing material like, suede, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">plether</span>, or crocodile skins. Sparkles are definitely not out of the question, nor are zebra stripes, studs, pictures, writing, or anything else completely hysterical that you can think of.<br /><br />Belt buckles are very often <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">holographic</span>. Which on its own is amazing, but the pictures are often of rappers or professional wrestlers. They are massive, and so they draw the eye, which can become quite uncomfortable as you stare at the halographic 50 cent on your head teacher's belt buckle. Mike, a PCV in NW province found a halographic Obama belt buckle, which is pretty sweet.http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/zambia-shoes-and-belt-buckles.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-6289234173867477218Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:02:00 +00002009-06-03T02:37:28.868-07:00Finally an update from the bush!Hello all! I miss you all so much and am so glad I FINALLY get a chance to use the internet (and hopefully send home pictures, be patient!<br /><br />So I have spent my first month in the village and I really couldn't ask for a more perfect situation. I absolutely LOVE my village, my community, and most of all my host family. I am living about 3km from a national park (hippos and crocodiles live about 7km away), I have 8 schools in my catchment area: 5 are government run and 3 (including a high school) are community schools. My host father is a beekeeper, farmer, bricklayer, former blacksmith, former diamond miner, fisherman, pastor, librarian, nursery school teacher, and a member of the neighborhood watch, so he is a really active and amazing resource for me to get to know people in all walks of life in my area.<br /><br />I have a new local name, so I will be known in the village as Sombo. Sombo is the name of a bush fruit, which I have yet to see, but I am told it is small and blue. It is a Luvale name, and in Luvale the connotation is "girl who is always laughing and cheerful" so I think it fits. My area is not really heavily populated with Kaondes, the language they taught me during training, so that is a big issue I have been working on. My area is Chokwes, Luvales, Lundas, Kaondes, Luchazis, and Mbundas. So instead of attempting to learn all of those languages, I will be trying to learn Luvale and then maybe Chokwe eventuall. I can greet in all of them already, which is a start, but it is difficult to hear so many languages all the time.<br /><br />Oh, my new mailing address is:<br />Carrie Navin/PCV<br />Peace Corps Zambia<br />PO Box 130050<br />Mufumbwe, North Western Province<br />Zambia<br />AFRICA<br /><br />So I am in a part of my service called community entry. It is the first three months, where I am not supposed to leave my district (right now is the exception because I had provincial meetings) and I am not supposed to be doing any "work". What I AM supposed to be doing is meeting everyone I can in my area, sitting in on classrooms, going to meetings about school things and community events, learning the language, and getting to know the needs of the community. The idea is that you can imagine a Japanese person that knows how to say "how are you" in English, coming to your hometown and trying to "develop" it. Chances are they don't know how you do things and what your community needs or wants, so this is my time to learn about the desires and needs and priorities of my community, and not just doing things for my own agenda.<br /><br />As I mentioned before, my host father is a beekeeper. He owns 386 hives all around the area I live, and I actually got to go collect honey with him and two other men. His hives are big barrel drums that he sets up in trees. I got to see him make a smoker out of local brush, and then smoke out the bees and collect the honey. I now have more honey than I know what to do with, but it is amazing!<br /><br />Some other things I have been doing in the village include: Going to the Agricultural show to see many people competing for the best produce in the zone, Helping to paint the resource center in Kashima West to prepare it for opening, Attending my host brothers' mukanda (circumscision) ceremony, attending a mwali (girls' initiation) ceremony, attending the wedding of my nearest Peace Corps neighbor, Ryan, attending a different church each week to introduce myself to members of those congragations, meeting with the library committee, going to opening staff meetings at two of the schools, attending teachers' union meetings, attending a witchcraft trial, visiting schools in my zone, visiting and watching a blacksmith work, sitting and talking with people, asking questions, visiting the Kabompo River, hanging out at the clinic, and teaching my neighbor Lister, how to read in English. So I have been really busy and really happy. I have gotten to see my area a lot and have a long way to go.http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/06/finally-update-from-bush.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-4341308943989429292Sun, 26 Apr 2009 13:50:00 +00002009-04-26T07:04:22.340-07:00Swearing in and posting!So I was sworn in as a volunteer two days ago and it was a lot of fun. We had swearing in at the Ambassador's residence and so of course it was gorgeous. Ba Sikota (our head of training) wore a traditional Lozi outfit, which looked like a weird variety of Scottish kilt. It was awesome, he can rock it. The morning of the ceremony, Bob, who was going to be in Lusaka province, told us he was ETing (early termination) so I cried a bit, but overall the day was really wonderful and I am really I had such a great experience with my friends who I won't get to see for awhile. I have very mixed emotions and wish I could bring everyone to my site with me.<br /><br />I am kind of far out there, my nearest PC neighbor is 20km away, and Beth, Brittany, and Stevie are all about 35-40km away. I think we are going to make a date to make dinner and hang out at some point in the first month.<br /><br />The first three months I am supposed to stay mostly in my village and surrounding areas. I am not supposed to do "work" but just get to know everyone, hang out, settle in, see classes, and how things work in the village. I am not allowed to have outside visitors (PC visitors are allowed and I hope some people will come to visit!) so the first time someone can visit is July 24th, but Peace Corps recommends that you wait for awhile until I learn Luvale a little better and know my way around.<br /><br />I have gotten a bunch of packages and letters and have appreciate all of them! Thank you so much for all the love. Remember to use my Mufumbwe address for the new stuff you send so that it doesn't get stuck in Lusaka for months and months. Some new ideas for stuff: soup packets or instant packets (mac and cheese was suggested) taco seaoning type things, would be really amazing. Ramen is also good. Think that type of stuff. I love to cook but you have to be really creative and it takes a really long time to cook anything here.<br /><br />So I won't really have access to my blog for the next month (sorry!) but I should be on facebook or AIM/MSN fairly often if you want to chat just text me before you go on. I love you all!http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/04/swearing-in-and-posting.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-1165268822062928112Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:47:00 +00002009-04-15T07:53:45.314-07:00Second Site VisitHey All!<br />Sorry I havent posted in soooo long! It has been really busy! I did get to visit my site though last week, and it is beyond amazing.<br /><br />I am living in a place called Kashima East. I am replacing a volunteer who lived in Kashima West, 5k from me, and who is going to live in Lusaka (so I can still pester her with questions! Yay!)<br /><br />My town is amazing, they held a welcome party for me where some of the high school students sang for me. I got to see the resource center where they will be starting a nursery school soon, so if you want to send me cute pre-school lesson plans that you can find online I would love to use some. I hope to train that teacher and work closely with him.<br /><br />I live across the street from the witchdoctor/traditional healer of the village. Check out my facebook note for more information on that.<br /><br />Otherwise I am in really good health (knock on wood) and I swear in on April 24th as a true volunteer!http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/04/second-site-visit.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5629745112495355850.post-3746078019160494415Sun, 15 Mar 2009 12:12:00 +00002009-03-15T05:22:50.968-07:00contacting me!ok so i have a little more time to write while I wait for some early birds to get on facebook chat. the best way to reach me if you don't want to text or call (my parents, Lindsay or Peter can give you the number) is through facebook. I just got an internet phone so I should be able to sign on to that a couple times a week. email has yet to work, so hopefully it will soon.<br /><br />I haven't been able to receive mail frequently, but I can't express how much I love getting it!!! Send me random funny stories, send me updates, send me anything! I devour it all! As for packages, I would wait to send the bulk of them until I am settled at site and am able to give you all my address for north western. I do not have a lot of space at my homestay house (I have to keep my bike in my room!) so anything I get now is just going right into storage anyway. but when the time comes to send me things I would LOVE dried fruit, magazines, pictures of you!, drawings, and little things that kids could play with (stickers, crayons, figures, etc.)<br /><br />I make 11,000kwatcha a day during training, which makes me almost a millionare in a couple weeks, but it only amounts to $2 per day. So texts cost me 25 cents a text, so while it might be cheap for some things, when you compare it to how much I make it is really a lot of money.<br /><br />there is a wonderfully Horrible asian dubbed soap opera on tv behind me. they just said "can't you just stop being a playboy for once" and all the peace corps people in here burst out laughing because the dubbing is so awful. they play the most random things on tv.<br /><br />well....lindsay and peter didnt show up online (lazy bums) but i got to have a wonderful chat with sara! So I am signing off here. i will catch you later!http://carrie-in-africa.blogspot.com/2009/03/contacting-me.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Carrie)5